Choloepus didactylus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	PILOSA	MEGALONYCHIDAE

Scientific Name:

Choloepus didactylus

Species Authority:

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Common Name/s:

English	–	Linné's Two-toed Sloth, Southern Two-toed Sloth
Spanish	–	Perezoso de Dos Dedos, Perico Ligero

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Published:

2011

Assessor/s:

Plese, T. & Chiarello, A.

Reviewer/s:

Abba, A.M. & Superina, M.

Contributor/s:

Justification:
C. didactylus is listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, its occurrence in a number of protected areas, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category.

History:

2006	–	Least Concern (IUCN 2006)
2006	–	Least Concern
1996	–	Data Deficient

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	C. didactylus ranges through Venezuela (the delta and south of the Río Orinoco) and the Guianas (French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname) south into Brazil (Maranhão state west along the Rio Amazonas/Solimões) and west into the upper Amazon Basin of Ecuador and Peru. Its southern limit in the western Amazon of Brazil is unclear. It occurs in the southern departments of Colombia, with its northern limit being the departments of Meta and Guainía. It ranges from sea level up to 2,438 m asl (Britton 1941).
Countries:	Native: Brazil; Colombia; Ecuador; French Guiana; Guyana; Peru; Suriname; Venezuela
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	In Suriname, C. didactylus has been found at densities of 0.9 animals per hectare (Taube et al. 1999). In the Brazilian Amazon, estimated densities range from 0.13 individuals per hectare (Manaus region) to 0.88 animals per hectare in the flooded forests (Mamirauá Reserve; Queiroz 1995, Chiarello 2008).
Population Trend:	Unknown

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	C. didactylus is found in tropical moist lowland and montane forest. Two-toed sloths have nocturnal and solitary habits. Gestation length seems to be approximately 10 months (Eisenberg and Maliniak 1985) but estimates are quite variable.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	There are no major threats to C. didactylus. Because they are usually found high in the canopy, motionless and virtually invisible, they are not as commonly hunted as armadillos or tamanduas, and there are taboos against their consumption by some native groups. They are probably hunted opportunistically, but there is no serious bushmeat trade.

Major Threat(s):

There are no major threats to C. didactylus. Because they are usually found high in the canopy, motionless and virtually invisible, they are not as commonly hunted as armadillos or tamanduas, and there are taboos against their consumption by some native groups. They are probably hunted opportunistically, but there is no serious bushmeat trade.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	C. didactylus is present in many protected areas.

Conservation Actions:

C. didactylus is present in many protected areas.

Citation:	Plese, T. & Chiarello, A. 2011. Choloepus didactylus. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 May 2013.
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